(Wilde 2004) Until the mid-twentieth century, Gogodala villages typically consisted of a single communal thatched-roof longhouse, often more than 100 m. in length.
The Gogodala now live in smaller one- or two-room thatched huts scattered about the village site.
(Wilde 2004) For males in the Gogodala tribe, their lives are determined by their power or strength, which they call kamali.
Work for men ranges from paid employment in Balimo to hunting, making gardens, building houses, constructing canoes, clearing land, and cutting grass.
Jobs for women include rearing children, "cooking, fishing, making sago, sago bags, grass mats and fishing baskets, collecting firewood and other bush materials for use in the house, caring for animals and maintaining the house."
(Dundon 2002) According to the oral history of the people, a male ancestor brought the original sago with him and cultivated it in certain areas for others to collect.
(Dundon 2002) Since the Gogodala are a part of Papua New Guinea, they are governed by a Parliament that follows English common Law.
Since the law remains tough to enforce, cultures rely mainly on religion to establish norms and customs.
Missionaries also determined that objects and dances that were associated with male initiatory processes, mainly those associated with Aida ceremonies, were not suitable for Christianity.
Thus, missionaries and Gogodala Christians traveled to neighboring villages and emphasized that these traditions and objects be banned and destroyed.